Jody Weis

Chicago's rank-and-file officers issued a vote of "no confidence" in Police Supt. Jody Weis' leadership tonight. Greg Bella, third vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police, blamed Weis for low morale, poorly staffed districts, lack of cars and a lack of support. The department is in "complete meltdown" and needs a superintendent who has the respect of officers and better knowledge of the police department, he said. "The current superintendent has neither, and the citizens of Chicago are forced...

Juries found in favor of Chicago police in two cases that spotlight a new city policy to be more aggressive in defending officers in lawsuits. The juries returned their verdicts after federal trials in the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse, city officials said Thursday. For years, the city settled many suits, hedging that the cash it would take to make the suit disappear would be less than the cost of taking it to trial. The policy shifted under former Supt. Jody Weis, who in 2009...

Mayor Richard Daley today said he supported Police Supt. Jody Weis' refusal to publicly release the list of officers who have been the subject of repeated complaints, a decision that defies two federal judges, Clout Street reports .

Mayor Richard Daley and Police Supt. Jody Weis appeared before reporters today but refused to answer questions about the city's failure to keep its promise to put police officers on the street. To read more, head to Clout Street .

Jody Weis stepped down as police superintendent to pursue job opportunities, not because he wasn't granted a short-term contract to stay in the job until Rahm Emanuel takes office, Mayor Richard Daley said today. The lack of a contract extension "didn't matter, it had nothing to do with" Weis' decision to step down, the mayor said. "He made a decision for his family, there's nothing wrong with that. He has been a great public servant. " Weis' days were doomed since Emanuel made it...

Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis is leaving his post at the end of today, when his $310,000-a-year contract expires. He is being replaced, on an interim basis, by Terry Hillard who headed the Chicago police department from 1998 until 2003. "Serving as the superintendent of the Chicago Police Department has been an honor and a great privilege," Weis said in a statement. "I thank Mayor Daley, and the residents of Chicago, for this opportunity of a lifetime. " On Monday,...

A year after disbanding the scandal-plagued Special Operations Section, Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis is launching a similar unit to fight gangs, according to internal police documents obtained by the Chicago Tribune. FULL STORY

Mayor Richard Daley and Police Supt. Jody Weis attended an anti-violence march on Chicago's Southeast Side today. In this CLTV coverage, the mayor wonders about the state of moral values in the modern world and decries "children killing children. "

Mayor Richard Daley today defended Police Supt. Jody Weis' private meeting with West Side gang leaders, saying it's worth pursuing if it could save a life. "What it is, is the community people getting together with the police and talking to these gangbangers who live in the community," Daley said. Read more of this story on Clout Street .

Aldermen today approved a resolution honoring Alejandro Valadez, a recently slain Chicago police officer. Valadez's parents, siblings and fiance attended the meeting, with his mother dabbing her eyes with tissue as City Council members offered condolences. Police Supt. Jody Weis stood next to the family. You can read more stories about Valadez on Clout Street .

Officials today said 48 officers from the Chicago Police Department will head to Washington, D.C. to help with managing crowds for the presidential inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama. Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis said the officers have been chosen for their expertise. Police said the absence of the officers won't affect the day-to-day operations of the agency in the city. Nearly 100 police agencies nationwide are helping. The Chicago police officers depart Sunday...

Fireworks and large crowds at Navy Pier greeted the new year of 2011 as the clock struck midnight, with many more thousands of Chicagoans celebrating at parties throughout the area. Earlier Friday a family-friendly party at Navy Pier allowed younger children to see some fireworks, but as the clock counted down to the first Saturday of the new year a larger fireworks show entertained the many thousands of people who gathered inside and outside the pier facilities. Hotels and restaurants downtown...

Chicago law enforcement leaders continued a New Year's Eve tradition of their own today, asking residents throughout the region to refrain from celebrating the new year by shooting guns in the air or drinking and driving. Police Supt. Jody Weis said at a press conference this afternoon with law enforcement and religious leaders that the department would be "fully staffed" for the holiday. Officers would be out in force in areas "where celebratory gunfire was troublesome...

Mayoral candidate Carol Moseley Braun today called for Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis to be replaced, adding it's "nothing personal. " At a news conference announcing public safety initiatives, Braun said Weis hasn't connected with the rank-and-file, a situation that has led to poor morale. Braun said she is the sister of an active office and is from a police family, and street cops' relationship with the brass is as bad now as she's ever seen. She suggested a new superintendent could...

Chicago police investigators continued to search for answers today in the shooting deaths Friday afternoon of a 20-year-veteran officer and another man in the city's South Chicago neighborhood. Officer Michael Flisk was processing the scene of a burglary in the 8100 block of South Burnham Avenue at about 1:30 p.m. when he and the man who reported a burglary to his car, Stephen Peters, were killed by an unknown assailant. At an afternoon press conference today, Supt. Jody Weis...

At least five Chicago Police employees violated rules and regulations when a 14-year-old police impersonator went on patrol in January on the South Side, officials said today. Police have completed their internal investigation into the security breach, said Tina Skahill, chief of the Internal Affairs Division. The department will not make its findings public until Supt. Jody Weis reviews them, according to a report on the WBBM-AM Web site . "We did find evidence that department members --...

Mayor Richard Daley's new budget reveals yet another major restructuring at the Chicago Police Department. The administration wants to eliminate the position of First Deputy and consolidate all department units under two Assistant Superintendents, one for administration and one for operations, according to the budget released today. Supt. Jody Weis already shook up the department ranks within months of taking office in February. The latest restructuring,...

An on-duty Chicago police officer was shot in the leg late this afternoon at South Damen Avenue and the Stevenson Expressway, officials said. That officer, 37 years old and a nine-year department veteran, was being treated at Stroger Hospital and is expected to make a full recovery, Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis told reporters at the hospital. Chicago police officers block off northbound Damen Avenue at 33rd street Sunday night following the shooting.

An investigation into allegations that a Chicago police sergeant was involved in beating a suspect has been expanded and six more officers have also been yanked off the streets, police said today. "As part of this on-going investigation, a total of seven members of the Department have been relieved of their police powers and placed in administrative positions, pending the outcome of the investigation," said Lt. Maureen C. Biggane, a police spokeswoman. Chicago...